A Bird in a Cage
by Angel-VII
Summary: What happens when a certain espada looses all the respect he has for a certain evil Lord bad guy? M for language, VERY SOUR LEMONS coming. You were warned


**Authors Note/Disclaimer: I don't own bleach damn it. If I did Ulquiorra would have already had his slow motion shower scene and Ichigo would have been completely taken over by his hollow side.. *drools* Oh wait, you guys were waiting for a story. My bad. I like to ramble. Isn't that exciting. I wish it would stop being so damn cold here. I know how poor Hime-chan feels. Oh right, the story. Ja ne!**

* * *

"Ichigo where are you?" The girl stood in front of the window in her cell. The pale glow from Hueco Mundo's unchanging crescent moon the only light in her small world. The past few months of monotonous life at Hueco Mundo had faltered the girls resolve. Was she making any difference at all? Were her friends disgusted with her for betraying them or did they even remember her face? The white fabric of her uniform rustled silently as she sat on the cold stone floor. White. White. Everything here was white. Clean simple lines, no color, no life. Nothing. Her chest rose and fell with a deep unconscious sigh. Her lids blinking and trying to find something new to examine about the long since memorized image of the moon above her cage. She craved sunlight. She wanted her friends. She wanted anything beyond the monotony of life here. Even healing someone's severed limb or bleeding chest would be preferred to this monotony but no one had required her healing power in what felt like weeks.

Three times a day, every day, like clockwork, her caretaker would bring her meals. Cold, flavorless, bits of meat, stale bread, and overcooked vegetables would be presented to her- and forced down her throat if she refused to eat or made any effort to dispose of it out the window. She'd gotten away with not eating most of the vile stuff for about a week after she arrived before she was caught and threatened to be fed intravenously if she didn't cooperate in the future. She was under very strict orders from Lord Aizen. and her caretaker had devised several grotesque punishments for when he concluded she was doing something contrary to those orders.

"Why do you always do that?" As if summoned by her daydreaming her caretaker had manifested himself. She barely turned her head in his direction, just enough to glance at him from the corner of her eye. He stood, hands in pockets, the same blank expressionless face fixed on where she sat. A servant girl wheeled in the cart with her dinner, or lunch, maybe breakfast? What time was it? How many days had passed? Or was it weeks? Months? Her sense of time had slipped away from her with the loss of activities and light. "Is it that time already Ulquiorra-sama?" She didn't move towards the indicated cart, or move in any way. "I asked you a question woman" His voice was utterly devoid of emotion- showing neither curiosity or frustration. "I'm sorry Ulquiorra-sama. I don't really know what you mean." She couldn't even force her lips to curl up into a half smirk. "You sit at the window endlessly. As if you're expecting that trash you call your friends to come to your rescue at any moment. They will not come. They are disgusted with you. You betrayed them. Any memories you hold of them are only making you weak. You would do well to forget them. Your place is here now- serving Lord Aizen. Enough of this foolishness. I will not tolerate it."

The human lowered her head and closed her eyes. Her tangerine hair cascaded down her back and slipped over her shoulder to hide her face. "Actually, Ulquiorra-sama, I wasn't thinking of them at all. Thinking of them now is too painful." She had learned it was best to lie about thoughts of her loved ones. They would only be used against her later. "Actually, I was trying to figure out what time it was, and how long I'd been here. It's difficult to tell here in Hueco Mundo because there is no sun. And the moon isn't much help at all." He chest rose and fell again in a sigh.

"What use to your mission to serve Lord Aizen would that knowledge be to you?" She glanced up to him. "You're right. Silly me. My deepest apologies Ulquiorra-sama" She stood and brushed the wrinkles in her arrancar robe down. "It is evening by your standards. And you have been in our possession for just over sixteen months by your human calendar." Her eyes creased with a mixture of relief to have been given an answer, but horror struck by what that answer was. 'They really have forgotten me.' Her mind boggled.

"Woman. You will consume your nourishment in it's entirety. Do not waste Lord Aizens generosity. Why he sees fit to be so kind to you I do not understand. But do not think all of Las Noches guests are treated with so much dignity and kindness." She nodded her head and proceed to sit and quietly force the vile stuff down her throat, cringing internally. No matter how hard she tried to think of it as bread and bean paste, or ice cream, or anything slightly less vile, it just didn't help.

"I will return to check on you in one hour. All of that should be consumed. You will be ready to go. Your presence is required." She looked up from her plate a curious and overly excited expression lighting in her eyes. "Where are you taking me?" He blinked "That is none of your concern, stop wasting my time. One hour"

With that he closed the door behind him unceremoniously. The last thing Orihime heard of him was the click of the lock.

* * *

_**(R&R please. That stuff is always encouraging. And when I get nice reviews with specific requests I generally try to work them in somehow. Ja ne!)**_


End file.
